Cymbal



Feb. 6, 194 A. ZiLDJIAN 23893295? CYMBAL Filed Feb. 7, 1958 f fmverzibmiii 5.

Patented Feb. 6, 1940 CYMBAL Avedis Zildjian, Quincy, Mass. ApplicationFebruary 7, 19.38, SerialNo. 189,076

1 Claim.

This invention relates to cymbals particularly adapted for use inconnection with dance music, especially the so-called swing music.

A cymbal comprises a round, usually somewhat concave, metal disc adaptedto be supported at its middle and struck at or near its edge to emit itscharacteristic sound. As an orchestral instrument it is used to beat thetime, to emphasize a part of the musical composition being played, andto terminate the composition or a particular phase thereof.

The usual sound effect desired from a cymbal is a crash, although largecymbals used sometimes by symphony orchestras produce a distinct musicalnote. For most orchestral uses and for dance orchestras, with which thisinvention is particularly concerned, the cymbal should have no dominantmusical note which might discord with other instruments of theorchestra. The crash sound of the cymbal, however, has a well definedpitch, for instance, a high pitch or a low pitch. For dance music, andparticularly socalled swing music, a high pitch cymbal is desired.

The pitch of the usual cymbal of given diameter can be raised by makingthe cymbal thinner and so-called paper thin cymbals have been madehaving a relatively higher pitch than thicker cymbals of the samediameter. A still higher pitch cymbal is desired, however, and thethinness of the cymbal is limited.

A cymbal ordinarily is made by casting a blank from a suitablecomposition of metals, tempering the blank in a suitable'manner and thenfacing or surface finishing the blank by turning. Turning the disctoothin is injurious to the sound of the cymbal. The pitch of a cymbalmay be raised by decreasing its diameter but this is accomplished onlyat the expense of reduction of volume of sound which is not desirable.

Hence an object of the present invention is to provide a high pitchcymbal and particularly a high pitch paper thin cymbal.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a high pitchcymbal capable of producing a crashing sound and superimposed thereupona bass or low pitch effect that becomes distinguishable as the highpitch vibrations die away, thus giving a sound that rises rapidly to orstarts at high pitch and has the effect of dropping in pitch as theintensity of the sound diminishes.

It is also a further object of the invention to provide a cymbal thesound of which terminates with a prolonged high pitched audible vi- IUNITED ATES PATIENT OFFICE-I bration best described as a swish. That isto I say as the dominant crashing sound drops in intensity there emergesfrom the crash a low volume bass sound and a high-pitchgraduallydiminishing rustle or swish of long duration to carry overbetween successive beats of the music.

These objects briefly are obtained by making the cymbal of paperthinness with a shallow center spheroidal cup or dome and upturningthe'edge of the cymbal prominently with a broad sweep.

Fig. 1 is an elevation of a cymbal embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a cross section of the cymbal ofFig. 1.

The cymbal indicated generally by the numeral II] can be convenientlyheld or supported in any suitable manner but as herein shown issupported loosely upon a felt disc: I2 located at the upper end of astandard [4. A screw-threaded stud l6 passes loosely through the cymbaland there is a second felt washer l8 resting upon the top of the cymbaland under a wing nut 20 threaded on the stud. For some uses the nut 20may not be in pressure contact with the underlying felt l8 so that thecymbal is merely loosely supported by the stud l6 and the nut preventsseparation of the cymbal from the stud when the cymbal is violentlystruck onits periphery which for most orchestral purposes is the usualmanner of sounding the cymbal. The particular method of supporting thecymbal is not important except that it usually is supported at itsmiddle so that it can vibrate freely.

The cymbal embodying the present invention comprises a metal disc havingthe central cup or dome 22 through the middle of which the stud I6 isloosely passed. From the periphery of the cup the cymbal is flaredoutwardly and downwardly in substantially a straight line, as indicatedat 24, the body 24 being in efiect a flat cone. The peripheral edgeportion of the cymbal is upturned as at 26 along a smooth gradual curveof large radius, the peripheral edge 28 extending in elevationapproximately about half way up the conical section 24. This distance,however, can be varied. The cymbal is exceptionally thin, being ofso-called paper thinness, which in a twelve inch cymbal is approximatelytwenty-five thousandths of an inch, although the thickness increasesslightly toward the center.

The cymbal is made from a tensioned metal blank having the upturned edgeportion 26 formed by turning. The tensioned cymbal is then faced by ahand cutting tool while being rotated.

The upturned edge orrim is effective in greatly raising the pitch of thesound produced by the cymbal. A cymbal that, except for the upturnededge, has the same shape and dimensions gives a sound having a muchlower pitch.

The upturned rim also is effective in producing the highly desiredsustained swish sound. Thevcup 22 provides resonance and gives a basstone that becomes discernible, superimposed on the high pitchswish asthe vibrations diminish in amplitude. This is not the case of a cymbalnot having the upturned rim.

The sound effect produced by the cymbal when struck sharply on itsperiphery is a highpitched crash substantially free from any dominantnote and dying slowly away with a dimunition of pitch and ending in aprolonged swish fading away through a whisper with an underlying low'tone.

The underlying low tone and the prolonged swish are quite absent in theusual cymbal.

port-hole therethrough, said dome providing a low tone discernible inthe latter part of the audible-vibrations of the cymbal- -andntheupwardly flaring edge portion providing a high pitch crash sound, avertical standard on which said cymbal is supported, said standardhaving a smaller diameter stud passed loosely through said support-hole,and a soft yielding disc on said stud under said cymbal and on whichsaid cymbal rests loosely, the cymbal being free to tilt on said discand to vibrate thereat.'

AVEDIS ZILDJIAN.

